Despite this, the son of the current England captain has turned up at the academy of the Red’s rivals and is thought to have impressed the coaching staff.

It is even thought that Wayne, who currently earns around £300,000 per week, turns up to watch his son and mingles freely with other parents there.

Premier League clubs cannot sign a young player before the age of nine years old, so it is not uncommon to see youngsters play for several academies before they sign to a club.

Manchester United have always been a club associated with bringing young players through their academy and in to their first team, a notable example of this being the ‘Class of 92’ in the 1999 treble-winning season or the recent emergence of Marcus Rashford.

However, City are believed to have stolen a march on their neighbours in recent years after the redevelopment of their training facilities.

This in part led to Ed Woodward, United’s chief executive, ordering a root and branch review of the club’s policy and personnel, leading to a major restructuring of the club’s youth system and scouting network.

Here’s a look at some other football stars with children who are trying to follow in their footsteps: